Broken
by KeepCalmAndLove
Summary: Evangeline is an aspiring music artist who just wants a guy to understand her. But when she falls asleep in the tub one night, she wakes up on the shores near Agrabah and makes a deal with a local water elemental. Maybe she'll meet the perfect guy when he comes in the form of a certain sexy, dark sorcerer
1. Prologue

Prologue:

_I am trapped in a dungeon. Dark shadows cover almost everything in sight, with the only light coming from the barred window. It looks like it is just about dawn. Rats scurry all over the place, coming dangerously close. I kick at them and try to curl in closer to the wall that I am chained to. A pair of shackled arms attempt to curl around my waist._

_Burying my face in the chest that belongs to the arms, I try to fight back the tears. A door in the opposite wall opens. Light pours in, illuminating the cell. Two, undistinguishable figures come towards us and pull away whomever is comforting me by his chains. He limps out of the room, still chained, and glances back at me, but I can't make out his features. Dawn comes. I can hear someone shouting something that I can't make out. A crowd cheers._

_What comes next strikes me to my very core. The crowd goes silent. Uneven footsteps walk up what seems to be a wooden plank. They stop. A sound that resembles a trap door opening reaches my ears. I hear the most sickening crack follow. The crowd cheers again. There is no one to help me fight the tears this time. _


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1:

My head is swimming when I wake up. _'Ugh, I must have had one too many drinks last night.' _ I try to survey my surroundings.

"Oh thank god, I'm in my apartment." Lifting myself off of the couch, I stumble around and look to see if anyone followed me home last night.

This isn't unusual for me. Most nights I perform at night clubs and bars. After I finish my set, I'll usually end up drinking and dancing the night away. But usually, I don't drink to the point where I can't walk strait. And I don't bring anyone home. Thankfully I find that I am alone.

I learned early on to always watch my back. There are creeps all around and I don't want to end up with one. I came up with my own set of rules a long time ago to keep myself safe.

_Rule #1: Never accept drinks from anyone, not even your friends._

_Rule #2: Make sure you have the address, phone number and first and last name of the guy before you go out with him._

_Rule #3: Always have your cell phone and cash on your person at all times._

_Rule #4: Always have some sort of weapon on you._

_Rule #5: Never let your guard down_

Those rules have been drilled into my head and heart. And almost all of the rules were necessary during my short life. My parents dumped me at the door of an orphanage when I was just six weeks old. The people at the orphanage tried tracking them down, but they had no luck. I didn't have many friends because I was that one 'weird' girl who was always in your life. No one wanted to adopt me. There was always something about me that made me unlovable for some reason.

Whatever. Music was my only escape. So when I was too old for the orphanage, I had already saved up enough to move to New York. Now I make my living by performing at small clubs in New York City. I'm still hoping to catch my big break. But until then, it's trying to steer clear of creeps at the clubs.

Somehow, I manage to stumble into the bathroom. I make a face at myself in the mirror.

"Ugh, I really over did it last night, huh?" Dark circles form under my eyes. My hair is crusty with what seems to be puke. A big, ugly bruises cover my right shoulder, collarbone and mars my right cheek.

'_Great, I look even more like a freak now.'_ I peel off the layers of clothing that smell like liqueur. They land in a crusty pile at my feet.

I start running the bath water and scrutinize my image in the mirror again. Except for the bruises, I have perfectly clear skin that is an ivory color. It's a shocking contrast to my onyx curls. I have a slim build that is slightly curvy, and I am at least 5' 10", which is unusually tall for a girl my age. But my eyes, those are my best and oddest feature.

I don't exactly know why, but for all of my twenty-one years, they have changed color. And not the 'hazel eyes change color'. My eyes drastically change color, all according to my mood. It might have been one of the reasons couples didn't want to adopt me. Right now they're a dull grey, which means I'm sleepy. Sometimes I can't help but think, _'Is this the_ _reason why my parents gave me up?_'

The bath tub fills up. I test the water.

"Perfect." I smile to myself. Lowering myself into the tub, i start to scrub the vomit off. Finishing with my hair and body, I decide to sit for a while longer and soak. I think to myself,

'_I wonder what it would be like. To have a family that loves me. To have friends that adore me. To have a guy that truly cares and understands me.'_ This is the last thing that crosses my mind before I close my eyes and drift off to sleep.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

Cold water rushes over me. I open my eyes and gasp. 'Okay, I've either lost my mind, or my sleepwalking habit has gone too far.'

Instead of my small, clean bathroom, I'm surrounded by sand, rocks, and ocean which is currently assaulting now. To my horror, I find I'm still naked. There's a rock near by. I swim to it, hoping that no one is here. Unfortunately, I'm wrong.

"There's no need for such modesty my dear." A painfully masculine voice tells me.

"Oh, um, you see I...I...I." I stumble through my words. My face feels hot and what little food is in my stomach threatens to come back up.

"You can turn around. I will see nothing that I like, I assure you." 'What's that supposed to mean?' Covering my chest with my arms, I slowly turn around. I kept my head down at first, but when I look up to the voice that was addressing me, it's hard not to faint. The creature in front of me has to be at least 7' tall, has scaly, iridescent black skin and looks like a dragon.

The thing seems to sense my fear, because the next thing that comes out of it's mouth/snout is,

"You do not need to be afraid. I will not hurt you. My name is Zachariah, Guardian of the Oceans. I am here to help you, Evangeline." Okay, the creepy water dragon knows my name. I carefully lower my arms, trying to read his expression as I do so.

"Alright, Zachariah, could you tell me where I am exactly, cause last time I was awake I was in my bath tub."

"You're on the shores right outside of Agrabah, a small city-state, one of the Seven Deserts."

"Agrabah? I've never heard of it. Why am I here? Why am I not at home? Why can't I go home?" My confusion is only increasing with this guys answers.

"No, I've got it! I hit my head on the edge of the tub and I am having a really vivid and lucid dream right now!" Zachariah shakes his head sadly.

"No, my child. You are not dreaming right now, and you will soon learn why you haven't heard of Agrabah before. These are things you must learn yourself. So, until you need me again Evangeline, I must depart."

"Depart? Wait! No! Don't go!" But my cries fall on deaf ears as he vanishes into thin air. I'm left alone in the surf hiding behind the rock.

"I might as well try to find some clothing then." Still covering my chest, I start walking up to the beach.

A splashing sound comes from the water.

"Zachariah?" I search for him hopelessly.

"No, I'm not Zachariah. Why on Earth would you think someone as beautiful as me could be that hideous creature?" The voice is high, and feminine. I turn to the direction of the voice. It belongs to a fairly beautiful woman with pale skin, brown eyes and red hair. But there is something, odd about her.

'_Oh, now I see it.'_ Instead of legs, she sports a tangerine tail. A mermaid. Could this get any weirder?


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

"Hello! Anyone there?" I snap out of my day dreaming.

She sits there wit a look of impatience. A purple octopus emerges from the water beside the mermaid. It makes a few clicking noises and she seams to understand them because she says to it,

"I know Armand, but it isn't every day you see a fledgling siren. My name is Saleen by the way."

"Wait a minute, what do you mean by fledgling siren?" This is seriously confusing me. What are they talking about, a siren. Saleen gives me a look of pity.

"Oh, then, you don't know? Your parents never told you?" I scoff at this.

"My parents didn't stick around long enough to tell me anything." She gives me a look of understanding. The octopus hands her some type of glitter and she takes it and throws it my direction. Glitter clouds my sight.

"Hey!" I scream at the mermaid.

"What was that for?" I don't like the evil grin that takes over her face.

"Oh, you'll see." Pain jolts through my body. I scream, but the pain doesn't stop. To my horror, I watch my legs fuse together, my fingers become webbed and clawed, scales erupt in random places on my body, and gills emerge on my neck. When the pain finally stops, I can hardly keep myself from screaming.

I almost look like the mermaid, you know if she had come out of a horror movie. My tale is a shiny black, my skin in the same color but has tiny gray scales that have formed into clusters on random parts of my torso. I can feel fangs poking through my gums. Saleen laughs. My eyes must have turned red because the next thing out of her mouth is,

"Oh dear, don't be mad at me . I only wanted to show you what you looked like. You know, underneath your human counterpart."

"Human counterpart? Why don't you just change me back into a human and explain this all to me. Cause clearly I don't know what I am." She looks like she is contemplating the idea. The octopus makes some clicking noises and she seams to agree.

"Okay!" Saleen throws some more of that glitter at me. This time the transformation is less painful. "So I'm a water elemental, which means I can control anything with water, I can turn some people into sea creatures, or reveal their true selves. Many people get me mixed up with a siren, but I don't lure people to their death with my looks or song. You with me so far?"

I nod my head.

"Good! So, you are what is known as a siren. Sirens originally started out as female sea monsters that lured men to their deaths with their song. But the sailors learned quickly and started plugging their ears with cotton. So naturally, the sirens had to evolve. They did this by developing shapeshifting powers that were controlled by a pendant. Now they were able to become whatever the man that looked at them desired in a woman. But men soon learned this as well and started avoiding the areas sirens dwelled in." She gives her speech with as much zeal as a science teacher would giving a lecture on the evolution of humans.

"So, once again, sirens had to evolve. They started to walk on land to catch their prey. But when men started breaking the pendants, they had to put up another barrier. Sirens started being born on land in the form of human babies. Their powers would come in around their 21st birthday and their parents would give them their pendant. The young siren would be able to shift between forms. Men were so scared for their lives, until a young man discovered that no matter what form they were in, their eyes would always change color according to their mood. that's how I spotted you so easily. But the siren that was seducing the young man fell in love with him and she earned a soul. The sirens diet completely changed. Sirens started becoming assassins for hire, but their ultimate goal was to find their soulmate so they could have a soul." Saleen sighed.

"Wow that's an interesting story. Now that I know what I am, could you help me get home?"

"Why, of course my dear."

"Thank you so much. Now if you could..."

"Ah, ah, ah." She wagged her finger at me.

"I don't do anything unless it will benefit me in some way. If you want to go home, you have to do something for me. Here." Saleen grabbed some water, sand and seashells in her hand. She closed her hand over them and opened it again. It was an aquamarine encased in silver. Saleen tossed it to me.

"That should help you control your powers. Now men will see you as whatever their puny little hearts desire in a woman. Remember the only people who will see your human form are animals, other magical creatures, people who have been in love, men who know what you are, and of course, your soulmate. Try to keep your emotions in check, cause if men see your eyes change, the illusion will fade."

"Okay. And what exactly do you want me to do." Uneasiness fills me as she smiles at me wickedly.

"I need you to go to Agrabah and steal the oracle from the palace treasury for me. You have one month to do so, or else you'll never go home and I get your first born child." I stare at her in horror.

"Why would you need my first born?"

"Because," she says nonchalantly, "You'll soon find that you may not necessarily want to go back once you see Agrabah. So, the possibility of your first born being taken will be sure to make you get the oracle for me. I can also sense the child will be of great use to me. Either way, I win."

"Okay fine, I'll get your oracle for you within the next month. But, if you don't mind giving me some clothing and directions to Agrabah?" She sighs and waves her hand. Water swarms up around me, then falls back to the ocean.

I'm wearing a midnight blue shirt that stops above my belly button, harem pants that cinch in around my ankles, and boots that curl at the ends. A midnight blue veil covers half of my face. The pendant hangs around my neck. Saleen waves her hand again and a black horse and copper satchel appear beside me.

"Onyx will take you to Agrabah. Once you get there he'll turn into a dog and help you find the oracle and protect you from danger. The satchel will give you whatever you need. If anyone gives you trouble, just sing and they'll do your bidding until you release them. You have one month."

"Okay, I'll see you in a month." I swing my leg up onto the horse, kick it, and we ride off to the direction of Agrabah.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

Sand was blowing through my hair and into my eyes as we approached the city wall. It's close to sunset and I hope we can get in before dark. Onyx slowed to a trot and headed to the gates. I could see the guard towers and the pendant grew hot on my neck. A guard climbs down the stairs to the gate.

"Halt, who goes there." It's a large muscular man with a black goatee and a missing tooth.

He looks taken aback when he looks up at me. I wonder what he sees. I snap my fingers in his face to bring him out of his daze. He blinks a few times and looks at me again.

"Hello, my name is Evangeline, I need to get to the palace. Could you escort me there?"

"Well, I suppose I could escort you. But if you need anything else, please tell me. My name is Razoul, Captain of the Guards. And I live to serve you, the royal family, and the good people of Agrabah." He gives a deep low bow and helps me off of Onyx.

'_Yes, by this rate, I'll get the oracle and go home in no time!'_ Razoul signals to another guard to open the gates.

He turns to face me.

"May I ask you what business brings you to Agrabah miss?"

"Oh yes." My heartbeat quickens. I didn't actually think of what to say if someone asked why I'm here. "My mother is a distant cousin of one of the servants that works in the treasury, and she wanted me to come and retrieve a valuable family heirloom." Good, that sounds convincing.

Along the way, I figured out that I wasn't just in another place, I was in another time period. A caravan leader had stopped and told me all about Agrabah and its wise ruler.

I trail after Razoul as he leads us through the city. He seems to not have realized that my big, black horse is now a big, black dog. Onyx follows beside me, looking around, seaming to memorize the way we came.

Merchants shout at us, trying to sell us their wares. Men keep staring at me and the pendant grows hotter. _ 'What are they all seeing? Are they all seeing the same thing?'_ These thought race through my head on our way to the palace gates. Razoul stops us. He waves up to another guard tower to let us in.

"Now, before we go in, let me tell you what will happen." He nods his head, looking flabbergasted at my tone of voice.

"You will take me to see the sultan. I will tell him that I am here to see my relative. You'll request I sleep in one of the chambers close to the royal treasury and you will not say a word if anything goes missing. Got it?" He nods his head, clearly dumbfounded.

The palace gates open up to let us in. Razoul leads us through the courtyard, up the steps and into the throne room. A jolly looking, short and round old man sits on the throne.

"Razoul, how nice to see you." Even his voice sounds jolly. His smile shows clearly through the snow white beard on his face. His bushy eyebrows shoot up through his turban when he looks at me. "And who is this?"

"My name is Evangeline, your highness. I come from a land far from here, sent by my mother. A relative of mine resides here at the palace. And, even though I know this would be imposing on you and your family, but if I could stay in a room near the treasury, it would be so kind of you." I make a priority of batting my lashes and curtsying. That was how I convinced the people at the orphanage to let me have the last cookie. And it has worked ever since.

"Well, of course my dear. Tomorrow morning we'll help you search for your relative. I'll have Fatima escort you to your room and help you get ready. But, I must ask, why do you need a room near the treasury?"

My heart races again.

"Because, my liege, my mother believes my relative works in the treasury."

"Well then, Fatima." A woman with tan skin and blonde hair steps forward.

"Yes Sultan?"

"Please take Evangeline to the Ocean room and help her get ready for dinner."

"Yes Sultan." She heads down a hallway and Onyx and I follow her. Fatima stops at a room that is across from what seams to be the treasury. 'Jackpot!' She opens the door. I gasp.

The room is 3x's the size of my entire apartment. A luxurious bathroom sits beside the balcony. Sapphire blue furnishings decorate the room and a sky blue paint covers the walls. A silver canopy hangs over the bed and the doors are painted the same color. This must be why it's called the Ocean room. Fatima guides me to the bathroom and helps me get cleaned up. She brushes my long, black, curly hair and paints my pale face. I'm dressed in a silver shirt that stops above my belly button, ivory harem pants that start at my waist and end at my ankles, silver veil over my face and slippers that curl slightly at the end. My black hair curls into glossy ringlets that shines blue in some places. I wonder if anyone will see it. Black kohl lines my eyes and my lips are painted a dark wine color. I spin around and giggle. The pendant still hangs around my neck_.'I could get used to this.'_


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

Onyx barks at me with approval. Even the bruises seem to have faded away. They're still there, but less noticeable.

Fatima awaits me at the door. I make my way towards her with as much grace as I possibly can. She leads me down the corridor to the dinning room. Along the way, I couldn't help but notice the red parrot and brown monkey lurking by the treasury. Better make sure to look out for them when I get the oracle tonight.

The Sultan sits at the head of the table. He beams up at me and pats the pillow to the right of him, signaling for me to come. I take my place beside and look at the other guests.

At my end of the table, it's fairly normal. A young man with tan skin, black hair and mahogany eyes sits across from me. Next to him is a beautiful girl with lighter skin, jet black hair and cinnamon eyes.

"Evangeline, this is my daughter, Jasmine and my son-in-law, Aladdin."

Sitting next to Jasmine is the brown monkey and red parrot from earlier, the monkey is eating a banana and the parrot is munching on grapes. "Those two are Abu and Iago."

"Oh how cute. Does polly want a..."

"If you say cracker, I will throw the candle holder at you." The parrot talks. Fluently. Jasmine seams to sense my distress.

"We probably should have warned you. Iago doesn't like crackers and as you can see, he talks more than other birds." A laugh comes from behind me,

"Yeah, getting him to talk is the easy part. Getting him to shut up is a completely different ballpark." A blue guy with a curled black goatee, top knot and pointed nose and ears with a piercing in one, walks up from behind me.

"Oh, Evangeline this is Genie, our resident genie, and Carpet, our flying carpet." The Sultan seams very calm about all of this. Why isn't anyone freaking out about the talking parrot and carpet that is alive.

Genie continues to perform tricks through dinner while Sultan asks me about myself. Then the parrot asks,

"Hey, where did you get those bruises? You look like you were in a fight."

"Iago!" Jasmine scolds the bird.

"No, no. It's fine. To answer your question, I was bucked off my horse and I landed on some rocks." Iago continues to ask me about my hair and skin, but then he reaches my eyes.

"Well, um, I was...cursed! Yes cursed by my ex-boyfriend who was a magician. He was always upset by how I hid my emotions so well, so he cursed my eyes to always show my emotions." Okay, I covered that up pretty quickly.

We finish eating dinner and I go back to my room and wait for the perfect moment to steal the oracle.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

It's near midnight when I sneak out of my room to the treasury. Carefully opening the doors, I tip-toe inside. The room is filled with gold coins and jewels. But what I'm looking for is in the middle of the room.

From the limited description provided by the satchel, I can tell that the oracle is the scepter in the middle of the room with the emerald on top. Making my way to the middle of the room, I'm just about to grab it when,

"Well, isn't it nice to see you here. At night. In the treasury." The parrot sits there with the monkey. Both are tapping their feet and crossing their arms.

"Damn it. Listen, you won't tell the Sultan right?" Iago and Abu look at each other, then back at me.

"What's in it for us."

"How about I don't string you over a fire? Look I just need the oracle. Tell me what you want me to do and you've got it."

Iago pulls Abu off to the side. They turn back to me again.

"Alright, we won't blab, if, you do us a favor."

"Okay, what is it."

"We want you to help us play a prank on Genie and Carpet." I grin. 'Looks like I'll have more fun than I thought I would.'

"So what were you planning on doing?" Iago rubs the ends of his wings together.

"You know monkey, I think I like this girl. Okay so here's the plan."

...

The next morning, I'm stationed in the gardens, waiting for the signal from Abu. Genie walks by with Carpet. There's the signal.

"Hey! Genie!" I step in front of him, blocking his path. My job is to keep him and carpet preoccupied while Iago and Abu get the stuff we're planning on dumping over Genie and Carpet ready. When the goop is finished, Abu will signal to me again so I can get out of the way. Iago will then push the goop off of the plank and it will land all over Genie and Carpet.

"Hey Evangeline! Whats up?"

"Oh nothing much. I was just wondering if you could give me some directions to the armory?"

"The armory?" Genie asks, clearly confused.

"Yeah, you see once I get what I need from my relative, I'll have to guard it from thieves. And since I don't have a weapon to do that with, I was hoping to grab one from the armory to take with me on my journey."

"Well first you take a left down the hallway then you..." Genie continues giving directions, turning into one of those maps that you see at malls, only this one is of the palace. Abu gives the signal again. Genie is still going on when I say,

"Well thanks Genie! I couldn't have found it without you. Bye!" I run behind the bushes. 'This is going to good.'

Genie looks at Carpet with a confused look and starts to walk when a big pile of glob lands on his head and carpet.

"Hmm," Genie turns into a weather man, "Today's forecast predicts large globs falling from the sky in the palace gardens area. Back to you June." I run inside to find Iago and Abu laughing their guts out.

"I can't believe it. Did you see that goop splatter? Ah, priceless." He wipes a tear from his eyes.

"Well that was fun, but can we go get the oracle please?"

"Okay, okay. Geez. You'd think the girl would take a minute to laugh. Why don't you wait in the throne room, Evangeline. We'll go get the oracle for you. It'll be less suspicious that way." Iago head towards the direction of the treasury, while I make my way to the throne room.

Onyx materializes beside me.

"So you think we're going to have to make a run for it?" He just keeps staring forward. Onyx stops just outside the throne room and growls.

"What? What is it?" Ignoring the crazy, magical dog, I push open the doors.

"Oh, finally. You, get me some wine. And do it quickly." The guy is sitting on the throne, acting like he owns the place. He's very pale for someone who lives in a desert and obsidian curls fall out from his turban. Black and blue clothing covers his whole body except for his left hand and face.

'_Isn't he hot in all that clothing?'_ A copper glove covers his right hand. I look at him incredulously. Onyx growls again.

Placing my hands on my hips, I tap my foot, glaring at him.

"Do I look like a servant to you?" He looks me up and down.

"Yes. Now go get me my drink slave." All right, this guy is pushing my buttons. I walk up to him and slap him across the face. He looks absolutely furious. His hands reach for my neck. Onyx tackles him.

He tries to pry the dog off him. Onyx stays put. I smirk at him.

"Who's so high and mighty now, hotshot. Onyx, you can get off of him now." I lean down to help him back up after Onyx gets off of him.

"How dare you slap me, you little wench." He about to grab me again when Onyx growls. The guy doesn't seam to want to take the chance. He stands about six feet and I have to look up at him when I speak to him.

"Maybe I wouldn't have slapped you if you weren't being such a prick. I'm a guest here and you can't just assume that everyone you see here that isn't the royal family is a servant. I don't even know what would've happened if it was a diplomat from another country. That's got to be a way to start a war."

His eyes narrow at me.

"And who says I don't want to start one?"

This guy is clearly crazy.

"Why the hell would you want to do that?!" He looks at me like I'm the dumbest person in the world.

"For power of course. But I wouldn't expect a stupid young girl like you to understand that. You must be one of the most idiotic people I've ever met!"

I've had enough of this guy.

"Okay! It's official. You're completely, absolutely, the most arrogant, self centered, insane, egotistical guy I've ever met! So I'm going to leave and hope and pray that I never have to see the likes of you ever again. Goodbye!" I start to walk out of the throne room in a huff.

He shouts back at me.

"Your just lucky your dog didn't let me add more bruises to your pretty face!" I turn around, stunned.

"You can see my bruises?" He looks at me like I'm crazy.

"Of course I can. Just as clearly I can see your eyes change color." It hits me. The pendant never grew hot, he never saw me as what his heart desires in a woman. So either this guy is a magical being, knows what I am, or has been in love. I instantly rule out the been in love because no girl could be in love with this guy and he couldn't have fallen in love with a girl. He's the type of guy to be too self-centered for love. He clearly doesn't know what I am, despite him seeing my eyes change. So he must be a magical being.

"Could I ask you what you are?"

"What do you mean by that?" He asks, raising an eyebrow at me.

"Well, what kind of magical being are you?"

"Why would you think that I'm a magical being?"

"Um, because only magical beings can see my eyes and bruises."

"Listen, I don't know what is wrong with you, but sorcerers aren't magical beings. Sure, magic flows through our blood, but we only control magic. Besides, we're born, not created."

"Okay, thanks for that history lecture." I say sarcastically, rolling my eyes. Alright now, so how can he see me. I don't know, but I better find out soon.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

I'm staring at the guy wondering how he can see my human form. Maybe this is what he desires in a woman. No, then the pendant still would've at least felt warm, right? The guy is left standing there as he watches me with confusion.

Iago and Abu come crashing in through the room. Their eyes settle on me.

"Evangeline, we've got to run! Mozenrath is in the palace and his crazy eel and mamluks are chasing everyone!" Iago screams at me, completely oblivious to the guy right next to him.

"Ahem" The guy clears his throat and stares down at Iago.

"Oh, hey Mozenrath! Buddy! Tell me, are you still sure about that eel, because no one will take you serious with him. What you need is a parrot. We're so much more intelligent than those creepy flying eels. And I do great work." Iago sure cozies up to people when he wants to.

'_Take note, Iago is a coward and will do anything to keep his behind safe.'_

There's something poking my side. I look down at it and can't contain the scream that escapes my lips.

"What is that thing?!" It looks like a brown eel. Except eels don't have mismatched eyes and I'm pretty sure they don't fly. It has a creepy smile on its face.

"Xerxes, come." Mozenrath orders the eel. Xerxes swims/flies over to his shoulder and rests where Iago was sitting only a few minutes before. Zombie things, which I'm guessing are mamluks, shuffle in through the door.

"Take them to the dungeon." Mozenrath orders the mamluks. Xerxes giggles wickedly.

"Oh no." I say standing up and walking over to Mozenrath again. Remembering what Saleen told me, I shout to Iago and Abu, "Guys cover your ears until I tell you can lower your arms."

"Okay, I don't know what you're planning, but okay." Iago and Abu cover their ears. I turn to face Mozenrath, open my mouth and a haunting melody escapes from inside of me. At first, he looked confused, but his confusion faded into a dazed look. I stop singing.

The mamluks look unaffected, but they don't shuffle forward any further. Xerxes wears the same expression as his master.

"Jump." I order him, just to test it out. He jumps, not very high, but he still jumps. The eel rises a little in the air and lowers back down.

"Perfect." I say grinning.

"Transport the mamluks back to wherever you came from." He raises his gloved hand, waves it at the mamluks, an they vanish. I notice that the glove glowed blue a little bit.

"Good boy. Now, you and your eel are going to go down to the dungeons and chain yourself up. Go."

He walks out like his zombies, with the eel following him. I decide to follow him. But before I walk out of the throne room, I tell Abu and Iago,

"You can uncover your ears now guys. I'm going to make sure he does what I asked them to do." They stare at me, completely amazed as I walk out after Mozenrath.

...

The dungeons are dark and musty. Rats scurry around the floor and I can't help but feel a little squeamish. We stop at a door that leads into a cell. Mozenrath walks over to the opposite wall where chains and shackles hang. He cuffs the eel first then cuffs himself.

"Great job. I release you." The glazed look in his eyes vanishes. He thrashes around and his glove glows a little.

"Ah, ah, ah." I wave my finger at him.

"I think I'll take that."

"No!" He shouts at, clearly panicked. I ignore his protests and reach for the glove. What I see next almost makes me want to hurl. The flesh and muscles on his right hand are completely gone. Porcelain colored bone is the only thing left.

"What the heck happened to your hand?"

"It's what I gave to be the most powerful sorcerer of the millennia. It was shortening my life, but now I will live a full one thanks to the Elixir of Life. My hand is the only symptom of the gauntlet's power left."

I laugh at him.

"Powerful huh? Then tell me. How was the most powerful sorcerer of the millennia bested by a magic-less, 21 year old girl? It looks like that glove of yours is absolutely worthless. Some sorcerer you are."

I wave the glove in his face and laugh all the way out the door, making sure it's the last thing he hears before his freedom is officially taken away. Everyone is in the throne room when I come back.

"Hey guys. What's up?" I nonchalantly ask.

The Sultan speaks first.

"Iago tells me that you, singlehandedly, overpowered Mozenrath, without having to engage him in violence. Is this true?"

"Yeah." I say nodding my head, feeling pretty good.

"That's amazing!" Aladdin says excitedly.

Genie poofs into a tv talk show host, with everyone else in the audience, and the two of us sitting in chairs.

"So, Evangeline, darling. Tell us how you defeated wiz kid, without any physical confrontation or magic, and manage to take away his magic gauntlet."

"Well...I...um..."

"She sang!" Iago shouts from the audience.

"She sang? I don't believe it. Come on Evangeline, tell us how you did it."

"It's true. The monkey and I both saw it with our own eyes. She made us cover our ears and she sang. Mozenrath and the eel fell under her control, and she made Mozenrath call off the mamluks and chain himself up in the dungeons. It was like magic."

"Oh he's just over imaginative. I just told him what to do. He must have seem my eyes and thought I was a demon or something. Many people think I'm a magical being with my eyes." I laugh nervously. That bird is going to get me into trouble with that big mouth of his.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

The Sultan allows me to choose an object from the treasury as my reward. Iago is completely upset

by this, complaining how he had done heroic things but never got rewarded.

Aladdin retorted, telling him he did more harm than good.

"Well, your majesty, I couldn't possibly take something from the royal treasury."

"My dear, I insist."

"Well, there is one thing I could take."

"And what is that my dear?" He asks curiously.

"Well, I heard on my travels about the oracle being in your possession. And I just wondered if it was true and if you still had it." Jasmine looks at me suspiciously.

"And why would you need it Evangeline?"

"Well, I wanted to know who my soulmate is. My mother is old, and she wants to see me at least fall in love before she leaves this earth."

"Of course you can have the oracle! Besides, we've already used up all of our questions. It should go to someone who is deserving of it." Aladdin beams at me and takes Jasmine's hand in his own and squeezes it. The action makes me feel guilty to know that I'm deceiving these people. They've been nothing but kind to me, and I've done nothing but trick them.

The Sultan leads me to the treasury and points out the oracle. Of course I know already which one of the many treasures it is, but I'm not going to tell him that. I lift the oracle up into my hand.

It really is beautiful. The emerald at the too glistens and shines and the gold of the scepter is polished. Elegantly crafted, it doesn't mask the knowledge this one artifact holds inside.

"Thank you Sultan. You don't know how much this means to me." I'm tearing up a little. I'll get to go home, at last. The old man takes my hands in his and pats them gently. He looks up with absolute kindness in his eyes.

"It is a pleasure to help someone as kind and brave as you."

"Jasmine is very lucky to have a father like you." I whisper to him, smiling. Something crosses my mind.

"Sultan."

"Yes dear?"

"Could you tell me what will happen to the young man that I detained today."

"You mean Mozenrath? Well, he will have a fair trial, judged by the rulers of the other deserts, and sentenced accordingly. But I am afraid we cannot ignore the heinous crimes he has committed, not only against Agrabah, but the other Seven Deserts. He will be regarded as a ruler himself, but his diplomatic immunity will not help him much."

"He's a ruler?"

"Yes, he rules the Land of the Black Sands. From what my daughter and Aladdin have told me, it's a dark and dismal place where not even the sun will shine. I cannot even imagine what it would be like to live there all the time."

"Well, would you at least let him explain his actions?" I look into the Sultan's eyes, hopeful that he will say yes.

"I suppose so, but he still must be held accountable for his crimes. If it makes you feel any better, I will let you ask the questions at the trial." The Sultan lets go of my hands and walks away from me, out the treasury door. I look down at the floor, wondering why I have this disappointed and crestfallen feeling. It's not like I care about the guy's fate. Right?

...

It's almost sunset when we sit back down at dinner. The Sultan announces that tomorrow rulers from the other Seven Deserts will be here tomorrow to participate in Mozenrath's trial. That means tomorrow everyone will have to be dolled up and on their best behavior. And I will be revered as the hero of the Seven Deserts. This means I get to ask him the questions asked by the rulers and my own questions. I also get awarded a medal of honor and receive a life of luxury. The best clothes, houses, doctors,

"Well the credit can't all go to me. After all, I've heard this isn't your only encounter with Mozenrath. Hasn't Aladdin and everyone else faced him down at least once or twice before."

"Oh the humility of this girl. Can you believe it?!" Genie turns into an old granny and pinches my cheek, saying how proud he is of the young lady I've grown to be. _ 'Is this what Grandmothers are like?'_

I turn in early, but all night I find that I can't sleep well. Mozenrath floods my mind, haunting what little sleep I do get.

'_God! Why can't I get this guy out of my head!_'


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9:

The next day, I am surrounded by diplomats from the other deserts, being congratulated on my heroic actions. The pendant us burning on my neck. Many marriage proposals come my way, and I politely decline. After all, they'd only receive a something unreal. Although, the king of Quirkistan isn't that bad looking. But I keep getting this weird vibe from him, so I steer clear of him and the other Quirkistanian politicians.

I'm dressed in all white, a sign of heroism in some countries, and the crowd cheers as the Sultan presents me the medal of honor. When we all sit down to eat at the feast that has been prepared in my honor, I see Iago and Abu talking with some of the diplomats.

"We swear! She sang and Mozenrath and that crazy eel of his turned just as mindless as his mamluks. I can prove it, here, I heard a little bit of what she sang." Iago opens his mouth and Onyx tackles him.

I stand up and lift Onyx off of Iago.

"I'm so sorry, he must just be annoyed by your talking. Hey, Iago, Abu. Could you come and talk with me privately." They look a little scared, but still follow me into the next room. I look around to check and make sure it's empty.

'_The coast is clear. I'm going to take care of a major problem.'_

"Onyx, guard the door."

"Why does the dog need to guard the door?" Iago asks nervously.

"Because," I leer at him through my teeth.

"You two won't be able to get away if Onyx is guarding the door. Now, you keep blabbing about how I defeated Mozenrath. Well, it's true what you saw. My singing did incapacitate him and his eel. But that was so I could protect you guys, cause from the looks of it, he was a bad guy. Unfortunately, I should have done the same to you."

"Why?" Iago says nervously.

"You two keep talking about how I did the deed. And if you don't stop blabbing your big mouths, I'm going to be revealed. So, it's your choice. Agree to stop talking about how I did it and just go along with my story, or keep talking and end up just like Mozenrath."

"Um, you know what Abu? THIS GIRL IS NUTS!" They try to make a break for the door, but Onyx stops them.

"I'm really sorry guys, but you leave me no choice. I can't have you exposing me. Onyx, don't listen."

I open my mouth, and the same haunting melody comes out. Iago and Abu's eyes glaze over and they stop resisting Onyx's grip on them.

"Good. Now listen to me. You will act exactly like you usually do. But, whenever someone asks you about how I defeated Mozenrath, you'll just go with my story of how he thought I was a demon and submitted to me out of cowardice. Got it?" They nod their heads.

"Good. Onyx, release them. So guys are we good?"

There eyes are still glazed over, but they still act with all the energy they had before.

"Yeah, we're good. Come on monkey. I'm starving. Do you think they have any grapes?" My secret is safe, for now.

...

We're feasting when a servant comes up to The Sultan and whispers in his ear.

"Oh my. Well have the guards tried to stop it." The servant whispers something else.

"I guess we'll just have to deal with it somehow." He turns back to his food. _'Odd. There is clearly something wrong. Why doesn't he say something to the other rulers?_'

"Excuse me, Sultan, but I couldn't help but overhear. What is the problem?"

"Well, there appears to be a young woman at the palace gates trying to get in. She says there is something of great importance that she must warn me about. But she is a sworn enemy of the Seven Deserts. We simply cannot let her come in."

"Oh, Sultan. You should know by now. I don't need an invitation to come in." All the guests turn to the direction of the voice.

A young woman stands in the doorway of the dining room. She has short black hair, tan skin and dark eyes. At first, you would guess she was a noblewoman. But when you really look at her, you can tell she hasn't lived nobly in a long time.

"Nasira." Aladdin growls at her.

"Nasira, I have told you many times before, you are not welcome here. Guards! Arrest that woman." The guards come running at her. She raises a hand and the guards go flying back.

"I'm afraid dear Sultan, that you might want to hear what I have to say before you arrest me. You have all been deceived here. The girl you call Evangeline is nothing but a lying, treacherous snake."

"Evangeline what is she talking about?" Jasmine asks me. Nasira laughs.

"Princess you will soon see. But only when I reveal it. So my dear Evangeline, you are cursed to never reveal your secret until I do. But, I'm not here for you." She turns her attention away from me to the Sultan. A wicked grin creeps across her face.

"As you all know, my brother Jafar was defeated by your street rat prince, Aladdin. But not all of you know about Destane." The guests mumble about Jafar and Destane.

"Destane was the previous ruler of the Land of the Black Sand until his traitorous apprentice betrayed him.

So, you must all be wondering why I bring up these two men. Well, I'll tell you why. By the next new moon, both of them will be back, and more powerful than ever. None of you will be able to stop us from ruling the Seven Deserts. Now, I bid you ado."

She laughs wickedly and vanishes into thin air. The guests start to panic and scream, asking what to do.

Genie materializes above the table and blows a giant air horn to get everyone's attention. He smiles sheepishly and disappears again.

"Thank you Genie. Now could someone please tell me what the big deal is about Jafar and Destane?" I ask shouting with my arms above my head. A diplomat yells at me,

"How about you tell us what she meant by you being a liar?"

"If you didn't hear her, she already has placed a curse on me, preventing me form telling anyone. Now who are these two men?"

"Jafar was the old vizier. He tried to take over Agrabah, but we defeated him, twice already. In the end his greed was always his downfall." Aladdin tells me.

"Yeah, you bet. His greediness always prevented him from giving me a well deserved paycheck. But, boy am I glad to be rid of him. But Destane, all I know is that not even Jafar would go near him, he was supposed to be a real hardcase."

"Yeah, I mean the only person who knows about Destane is..." Genie swallows loudly.

"Mozenrath." Aladdin finishes for him, grinding his teeth.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10:

I'm sent down, alone, to fetch Mozenrath and Xerxes. Everyone must be discussing about what I could be keeping from them. Personally, I'm kind of glad for that curse Nasira put on me. Makes it a lot easier to hide my secret.

I open the cell door and light illuminates Mozenrath's figure. He looks up and me and glares.

'_Does he think that will make me go away?'_ Glaring back at him I sing again to make sure he will not attack me the moment he is released.

I unchain him and help him up. The glazed look in his eyes doesn't mask their glittering black orbs. But when I really look at them, I can see they're a midnight blue. Tearing my gaze away from his, I give him his orders.

"You are to walk up with me up the stairs. When we get to the throne room, I will release you, but you cannot attack the other guests or I will make you my slave forever. Now go."

We stop just outside the throne room.

"I release you." I whisper into his ear just incase anyone is around. He glares at me, but behaves. For the eel, I whisper that he is to act like he normally does but cannot attack anyone. I push open the door.

The rulers are standing in a circle, whispering to each other. They all turn to look at us as we enter. Aladdin walks up to us. He looks suspiciously at me and glares at Mozenrath.

'_What exactly happened between these two?'_

He turns back towards me.

"Thanks Evangeline, not very many people would've gone down there alone. Especially with this guy."

"Aladdin, I'm hurt. You don't think I can be well behaved? Never mind. What exactly did you bring me up from my cozy little cell for?"

Aladdin gestures for us to follow him instead of answering Mozenrath's question. Some of the rulers glare at us as we break into their little group chat. The Sultan speaks first.

"Mozenrath, as much as I hate to say this, we need your help." Mozenrath's eyebrows shoot up.

"And why do you need my help Sultan?"

"Nasira, Jafar's sister, has found a way to revive him."

"And why does this concern me?" He asks with a bored tone of voice.

"Because she's also going to revive Destane." Aladdin cuts in.

I don't know how to describe what happened next. It was almost like Mozenrath went into shock. Could he go into shock? I snap my fingers in his face, but he grabs my arm, hard. And he did it with the bone hand. The blunt tips dig into my skin.

"Stop!" I tell him

"You're hurting me!" Aladdin intervenes, grabbing Mozenrath's arm and taking it off of mine.

"Thanks."

"No problem."

"Now, what is it with this Destane guy?" I wait for his answer.

"Destane was the most powerful sorcerer before I was. He was insane, power hungry, cruel..."

"Gee, where have we heard that before!" Iago says sarcastically.

"I am nothing like him!" Mozenrath's face has turned red from anger.

"Touchy."

"Iago, I would suggest you shut up now." I look into his eyes to make sure they're still glazed over. He stops talking, so I assume that he's still under the influence of the song. I turn to face Mozenrath.

"Hey, are you okay?" I whisper to him and rub his arm. He looks shocked from the affectionate gesture, but doesn't recoil.

"Yes, and if you could stop doing that, I would be better." I lower my arm back down by my side.

"Destane was my old mentor, until I managed to defeat him, turn him into a mamluk, and take control over his kingdom." I sense that there is more to this story, something that he desperately wants to keep secret.

Seeing how shaken up he is by all of this, I can't help but feel pity for him.

'_Woah, I'm feeling pity for this prick. Just yesterday he was ordering me around like a servant and calling me stupid.'_ I must not be feeling too well. Can sirens get sick?

"Mozenrath, if he comes back, what could he do?" Jasmine asks him.

"Destroy the world. Then he would continue to travel to other realms and destroy or enslave them. He would do this until there was nothing left but those loyal to him. Jafar and Nasira will try to stop him, but he would overpower them completely."

"Then how did you do it?" I ask him. "If Jafar and Nasira couldn't overpower him, then how could you have done it. You're fairly young and..."

"I'm 21." I pause.

"Okay, so am I but, still. You must have been young when you took control over your kingdom. How old were you when you overthrew Destane?"

"I was 17."

"So how does a 17 year-old boy take over an entire kingdom and overthrow an all powerful sorcerer?"

"I drugged his food and drink with sleeping pills. So, when he was passed out, I removed his magic. It's an extremely painful process, so he woke up a few times, but he was too drugged up to do anything about it. Then I injected him with the mamluk serum. He never saw it coming. But that's why it worked. If I had been confrontational instead of underhanded, it would have never worked."

"Wait a minute." Jasmine interrupts.

"Nasira said that by the next new moon she will have resurrected Jafar and Destane. That's four days away. So what if she hasn't done it already? Could we stop her before she brings them back?"

"Well, yes, but it would be difficult. We'd have to find out where she is going to resurrect them and exactly when she's going to do it."

"Why don't we ask the oracle."

"Evangeline, you don't have to do that." Jasmine tells me.

"No, I want to do it. Besides, I'm not the one who has to ask it, right?"

"She is right." Says one of the rulers.

"We could ask the oracle how to defeat Nasira."

"Great then, it's settled. I'll go get the oracle out of my room and we'll ask it how to defeat Nasira." I walk out of the room, cheerfully, feeling many pairs of eyes burning holes in my back.

...

I carefully hold the oracle as I walk back into the throne room.

"Who wants to ask?"

"I will." The king of Quirkistan steps up.

"I already know almost everything there is to know, and this is of great importance. So I will ask the oracle."

He takes the oracle from my hands.

"Oracle, please answer my question. How do we defeat Nasira and keep her from resurrecting Destane and Jafar?"

The oracle glows and lifts itself from the king's hands. A pale woman floats above the scepter.

"To defeat Nasira and keep her from resurrecting Jafar and Destane, you must find the Pharaoh's Scarab, located on the shores of Agrabah. Once the scarab is in your possession, you must go to the Cave of Wonders where Nasira will be performing her ritual. Place the scarab in the well where she'll place the potion ingredients she'll need for her ritual and Nasira's powers will be taken away when she attempts to bring Jafar and Destane back. If you do not do this, Nasira will succeed and we will all be doomed. Especially you two." She points at me and Mozenrath.

People decide to ignore that part. Another ruler asks,

"When will Nasira perform the ritual?"

"On the night of the new moon."

"Who should we send to retrieve the scarab?"

"The Princess, the Hero, the Granter of Wishes, the Carpet, the One Who Turned from Darkness, the Protecter, the Dark Guardian, and the Vessel of Angels."

"Well, we know that Genie is the Granter of Wishes, the Protecter is Abu, the One Who Turned from Darkness is Iago, Jasmine is the princess, I'm the hero, and Carpet is the carpet. But we don't know who the Dark Guardian or the Vessel of Angels is." Aladdin states calmly.

"Well, let's ask." Says the king of Quirkistan.

"Who is the Vessel of Angels and the Dark Guardian?" Another ruler asks.

"The young girl who hides a secret from you all, and one from herself is the Vessel of Angels. And the Dark Guardian is the one who has dealt with Destane before."

The oracle vanishes, and everyone stares at me and Mozenrath. The king of Quirkistan hands the oracle back to me.

'_Oh boy. What happens now?'_ I think.

'_What the heck is the Vessel of Angels? And what is the Dark Guardian? Well no one else seems concerned about it, so maybe I should just ignore it.'_

"She said we'd find the scarab on the shores of Agrabah. We know the way, right guys?" Aladdin appears hopeful with his statement.

"You know the way, I don't." Says Mozenrath.

"Well you could..."

"I will not ride that infernal carpet." He interrupts with a huff. I have an idea.

"You could always ride with me." I tell him. He looks at me skeptically.

"You're telling me that you know the way to the shores of Agrabah?"

"Yes, I am. I passed it on my way here." I practically lie through my teeth.

"We can take Onyx."

"We're going to ride your dog? Is it possible that you are even more crazy than I thought?"

"You shouldn't judge people by their appearances. After all, not everything is what it seems to be." I see my eyes change from a dark purple to a bright orange in the mirror behind Mozenrath.

He clearly doesn't know what I mean by that, so he disregards my statement completely.

"Fine, I'll ride with you. But before I go on this quest with you, I'll need my gauntlet." Aladdin opens his mouth to object, but I'm quicker to speak.

"Deal. You get your gauntlet, and in return you help us stop Nasira."

He takes my hand in his flesh one and shakes it. I pull it away from his and he says,

"Excellent! When do we leave?"


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11:

We're all set to go later that day. Aladdin, Jasmine, and Abu were on Carpet and Genie and Iago flew. Genie had told everyone that he'd take care of food and other arrangements, while I still carried the satchel with the oracle inside it. Saleen was still waiting for it, and even though I wasn't going to go home anytime soon, she could still point us in the right direction. I was getting Onyx saddled up when Mozenrath walked up behind me with his eel following him.

"So, we're really going to ride your dog, huh?" I sigh and shake my head at him.

"Didn't you listen to me at all. Things aren't always all that they appear to be. Now, you might want to take a step back." He looks confused and steps back. His eyes widen as he watches Onyx's body grow and reshape itself into one of a horse. Xerxes looks scared and flies behind his master's back.

I laugh at them and swing up onto Onyx's saddle.

"So, are you going to ride my 'dog' or are you going to walk to the shores of Agrabah?"

"How did he..."

"My ex-boyfriend, who also cursed my eyes to change color, gave him to me as a present. Onyx has been with me ever since. He remembers every location we've been at and the shapeshifting ability is so I don't have to leave him anywhere."

"Very efficient." He looks at the eel and smiles.

"Maybe I should figure out a spell to do that with you Xerxes." The eel looks at Mozenrath, horrified, and adamantly shakes his head. Mozenrath laughs, a genuinely humorous laugh.

"Wow, the famous Mozenrath laughs." I say sarcastically.

"Well, it's only natural for a human to laugh isn't it?"

"Yes it is. I'm only surprised because you aren't human." I joke back at him.

He rolls his eyes at me and swings up onto Onyx and sits behind me.

Aladdin swoops up to me on Carpet.

"Evangeline, are you sure you can handle being on your own with this guy?"

"Don't worry Aladdin. I'll make him behave." Mozenrath scoffs at this. Aladdin eyes him suspiciously, then turns his attention back to me.

"Well, if you're okay with it, but if you have any trouble just tell me."

"Don't worry, Aladdin. No harm will come to the girl. I promise." Aladdin looks at him skeptically.

"Hey, are we ready to go?" I ask, trying to break the tension. Aladdin breaks his gaze away from Mozenrath's.

"Yeah, just about. Why don't you guys get a head start and meet us there, you could probably start on looking for the scarab."

"Okay, we'll meet you there." I kick Onyx and snap his reigns and he takes off in the direction of the shores.

...

We reach the shores around midnight, twenty minutes before everyone else does. The entire way, I had to put up with Mozenrath threatening Xerxes when he just tried to help. God, I almost felt sympathetic for the little guy.

'_Well, I'm here. Might as well give Saleen the oracle.'_

I hand Mozenrath the satchel, but take the oracle out. He looks at me suspiciously.

"I'm going to go and start looking. You set up camp. Everything we'll need is in that bag."

"Why do you need the oracle?"

"I figured if I couldn't find it by the time everyone else got here, I'd ask the oracle the exact location." I don't know why I have this queasy feeling in my stomach. It's getting harder to lie to these people, and I don't like it.

I leave Mozenrath and Xerxes back at the campsite. Onyx travels along with me to the place where this all started. Standing on the rock, I call out for Saleen. Though, I'm not exactly sure how to do it. She didn't tell how to contact her once I got the oracle, so I guess I'll just wing it.

"Saleen! Saleen, where are you?!"

She rises up out of the water and hops up onto the rock. It almost looks like she was wrestled out of bed. Saleen glares at me.

"Geez, haven't you heard of sleep? Normal people have it. Why don't you try it sometime!"

"Sorry. Listen, I have the oracle with me." The but is cut off and hangs heavy in the air.

"Oh, great! But what else is there?"

She looks at me expectantly.

"But, I decided that I don't want to go home. There's something I need to do."

"Okay, but you did get me the oracle. So you get to keep your firstborn."

"Oh, right. I completely forgot about that. But, could you point me in the direction of the Pharaoh's Scarab?"

"The Pharaoh's Scarab? Why on earth would you need that? It's nothing but a piece of gold in the shape of a bug." I try to say something, but she just keeps going,

"I don't know, maybe it has some sapphires or rubies in it, but..."

"Saleen! I need the scarab to stop an insane woman from reviving a powerful sorcerer who could possibly destroy the world." She cocks an eyebrow at me and places a hand on her hip.

"And why should I care?"

"Because it's not only land that's going to be destroyed, it will be the ocean as well. The entire planet will be erased from existent."

"Oh. Why didn't you just say that in the first place? The scarab is somewhere in the underwater caves. I can help you look for it."

"Really? What's in it for you?"

"How about, I get to keep my kingdom safe and you give me the scarab when we're done. By the way, once I've asked my question, I'll let you have the oracle back."

"Well that's great. But why are you giving me back the oracle?"

"I have a feeling that you'll need it more than I do. Wait here a minute while I ask my question." She dives under the water for a few minutes, then resurfaces with a smile on her face.

"What did you ask it?"

"I asked it if I would ever find love. And it said that I had already found it."

"With who?"

"Armand. I should have known. After all he puts up with so many of my antics. So in return for being there for me, I'm going to turn him into a water elemental when we're done with this."

"Wow." I blink, stunned.

"That's actually very, sweet. Are you feeling well?" She shakes her head at me and hops up back onto the rock. Saleen takes out more of that glitter and sprinkles it over her tail. To my astonishment, I watch as she trades her tail for a pair of legs.

She stands up without any difficulty. It's clear that Saleen has done this before.

"Why did you do that?"

"To help you look, of course." She smiles devilishly at me.

"Okay, but I've got to sleep. The group I came here with set up camp over there. We can sleep for the night and then look for it tomorrow morning with fresh eyes."

We start walking towards the camp.


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12:

Saleen and I approach the camp and I see that everyone else has arrived. I make us stop about 20 feet from the fire.

"Saleen, I don't want you saying anything to them about what I am. Just say that you want to help out and you think you know where the scarab is, got it. They don't trust me a whole lot already, so I don't think they'd trust me at all if they knew I was a siren sent to steal their oracle."

"Got it. I will say nothing about me sending you or about you being a siren. I will follow along with whatever crazy story you've concocted and try not to blow your cover."

"Kay." We start walking again.

"Hey guys." I wave at them.

"I found someone who can help us."

Saleen steps forward into the light. Aladdin's jaw drops. Mozenrath looks dumbfounded, and I think Xerxes is flirting with Saleen. Jasmine looks furious, Genie looks worried, and Abu and Iago look scared. Jasmine speaks first.

"You brought her here?!"

"Yeah, what's wrong with that? Wait you know her?"

Iago speaks up.

"Heck yeah we know her! She's obsessed with Aladdin. Or did she not tell you about the time she cursed Jasmine to never be able to leave the water or the time she turned Al into a shark when you agreed to receive her help? THE WOMAN IS CRAZY!"

I face Saleen.

"Is this true?"

"Yes dear. But I want you all to know that I will not be trying to take Aladdin away from you, or anything else for that matter. I am only here to help."

Genie poofs what looks like a Bible into his hands. But instead of Bible, it says The Cosmic Binding of All Magical Beings. Saleen looks calm, but sweat starts to break out on her forehead.

"Place your right hand on the book ma'am." Genie orders her. She puts her hand on the book.

"Raise your left hand and repeat: I, Saleen, do swear to protect this group of magical beings, mortals, and animals from all harm, including myself." He pauses for her to repeat it back.

"I swear to not place a curse on any member of said group. I swear to not try to take Aladdin or any other member of the group with me back to the sea. I swear to not steal anything unless it was promised to me beforehand. I swear to not betray the other members of the group, no matter what." Saleen repeats everything back to him. I notice the silver light emanating from her hand and surrounding her body in a veil of light. The light vanishes and I see that there is a silver line that goes all the way around her neck with three lines coming off of it. One leads to her heart, one leads to her head, and one leads to her wrist. Genie poofs back to normal and the book disappears.

"There that should do it. For every one of her vows she violates, a piece of a line will disappear and so will a part of her magic. Only when I release her will she be able to threaten us in the slightest. I had wanted to do the same thing with wiz kid, but he doesn't have a right hand to give. Plus I don't have a copy of The Cosmic Binding of All Sorcerers." Genie shrugs his shoulders when he sees Mozenrath and Saleen glaring daggers at him. Saleen sighed,

"Well, I shouldn't be surprised at that. But I do want you to know that my obsession with Aladdin is over. Besides Jasmine and Aladdin look and sound cuter together."

The tension is so thick, you can cut it with a knife. Especially after Saleen's comment. I break through the silence,

"Well, okay. I think we should all go to bed. Saleen thinks that the scarab is in an underwater cave, so we'll

start there tomorrow morning. Goodnight everyone." They all mutter their goodnights to each other and me.

I look around and see that the only sleeping bag left, is the one next to Mozenrath. Scowling, I walk over and slip into the sleeping bag. There, I take off my clothes and put on new pajamas which consist of shorts and a tank top. I huddle down into the sleeping bag to escape the cold night air. The combined ocean and desert air amplify the coldness to a numbing degree. But, I can handle it. Luckily, Onyx, back in his dog form, settles in down by my side to offer me warmth.

I drift off into dreamless sleep.

...

Morning comes and I start to stretch when something holding me prevents it. I open my eyes.

'_Oh. My. God.'_ Mozenrath's flesh arm is wrapped around my waist huggin me to him. He has it so my face is pressed up against his chest.

I try to push away from him, but he just hugs me closer. So, then I try snapping my fingers in his face.

"Mozenrath. Mozenrath. Mozenrath! " he ignores me and just groans and hugs me even closer! There is another way to wake him up.

'_Oh dear God, please don't let this leave a bad taste in my mouth.'_

I open my mouth and sink my teeth into his chest, biting down hard. He doesn't even flinch.

'_What the heck! Is this guy made of steel or something?!' _

I can't knee him in the groin because I can't move my legs in the sleeping bag. I can't wake him up with sound. I can't wake him up by biting him. '_Mozenrath has to be the heaviest sleeper in the world!'_

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Xerxes asleep near Mozenrath's head. I manage to slip out one of my arms and poke Xerxes. He wakes up, rather slowly and groggily, and looks at me sleepily.

"Xerxes, can you help me out here please." He lazily nods his head.

"Okay, can you wake up Mozenrath?"

"Okay." The eel swims/flies from his resting place to Mozenrath's face. I watch with horror as he LICKS his cheek! Mozenrath's eyes shoot open and look down at me.

"Well it's about time you woke up! Do you know what I tried to wake you? I bit you for Pete's sake! Now if you could remove your arm from my waist so I can get dressed, that would be excellent."

Stunned, he rolls away from me.

"Thank you."

"Sorry. It was just so cold, I must have huddled next to you for warmth."

"It's fine." I go around and start waking people up. Saleen is the last one up and looks at me crankily.

"You know if you keep disturbing my beauty sleep, I'll end up with bags under my eyes." We all eat what little breakfast we can.

"Okay people. We're headed to the underwater caves, so you'll all need to dress appropriately. I can change back into a mermaid when we get in, but you guys don't have that ability. So, just let me handle everything." She raises a hand, and just like the first time, water raises up around me and crashes back down to the ground.

This time, I'm in an ice blue bikini. The top is bandeau style and the bottoms are shorts that start at my hips. I look around to see what everyone else is in.

Jasmine is wearing a strapless one piece that's a lavender color. Aladdin is wearing black swim trunks and Mozenrath is wearing white ones, but he's wearing a white swim shirt as well. I wonder why that is. His gauntlet is still present, but his turban is gone, so his raven locks are on full display. The only people who are the same as before are Genie, Carpet, Iago, Abu, Xerxes and Onyx.

Saleen walks up to me while everyone else is observing their new attire, and whispers in my ear,

"As a siren you'll automatically be able to breathe underwater. But there is also a possibility that you could revert into your siren form. So here."

She hands me a anklet with a silver chain and an aquamarine hanging from it.

"As long as you wear this, there is no chance of you reverting to your siren form in water. The only way it wouldn't work is if someone cast a revealing spell or if someone broke the aquamarine."

"Thanks."

"Your welcome." She smiles at me, then turns towards the rest of the group.

"Okay people, as you all know not all of you can breath underwater. But not all of you are going. Abu, Iago, Carpet, Xerxes, Onyx and Genie will stay here to look for the scarab on the shore just in case I was wrong about its location. Mozenrath, Evangeline, Aladdin, Jasmine and I will go look for it in the caves. So to make sure you guys can breath, I'm going to cast a spell over you. Just stand still and you won't feel a thing."

Saleen steps back, and starts muttering under her breath. A golden light surrounds all of us. I don't feel anything, but everyone else starts breathing heavy and make a run for the water. Saleen and I follow them, more calmly and slowly though.

I dive into the water and I see the aquamarine on the anklet glow a little bit.

'_Well, at least I know it works.'_

Saleen's legs have turned back into her tail and she instructs everyone to take deep breaths and that if we want to speak to speak in a higher voice than we usually use.

"Well, now that we've gotten our little lesson out of the way, where are the caves?" Mozenrath looks at her impatiently.

"Over this way. But once we're in, we'll probably have to split up into groups. So I'll go with Aladdin and Jasmine and you and Evangeline can go together. Is that alright?" I look at Mozenrath. Normally I would've just shrugged it off and done it reluctantly, but after what happened this morning...

"Um, well, I guess that's alright."

"Good, let's go." Saleen swims off in the direction of the caves with us in tow.


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter 13:

We enter the caves and I am awestruck. The entire cave system is composed of precious stones and metals.

"How the heck are we supposed to find a GOLD scarab, in all of this?!" I scream at Saleen. She rolls her eyes at me.

"The scarab is the only thing in this cavern that doesn't shine. Since it's not apart of the caves, the cave will be trying to reject it. So, whether the caves try to cover it with algae or rock, it will stick out like a sore thumb." She says it like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"Okay, Miss Know-It-All." I mumble under my breath. We keep swimming through the cave, looking for anything dull, until we come to two tunnels.

"So, you guys take the one on the right we'll take the one on the left?" I ask.

"Yep, just keep looking for the scarab. If you find it then just swim back here and blow this." Saleen hands me a conch shell.

"Kay, see you when we get back. Come on wiz kid."

Mozenrath glares at me, clearly annoyed by that nickname, and we swim into the tunnel.

"Keep an eye out for the scarab."

"Yes, I know. We all got the lecture from Saleen. Now let's just find this scarab, because the sooner we find it, the sooner I can be back in my Citadel, plotting my revenge against Aladdin."

I stop, pivot in place and look at him.

"Okay, that's it. What the hell happened between you two? Cause it's obvious you can't stand each other."

He rolls his eyes at me.

"Like I would expect you to understand. But if you must know, it's because numerous amount of times I have threatened his all of family and friends, tried to kill him to so I could take over the Seven Deserts, including Agrabah, and when I was dying, I attempted to switch bodies with him." He looks confused by the horrified expression on my face.

"What?"

"You tried to switch bodies with him! For Pete's sake, how nuts are you? Well there's his reason for hating you. But still, why on Earth do you hate him?"

His face twists into a mask of rage.

"Because he's been handed everything on a silver platter! His genie, his friends, his wife, his position as soon-to-be sultan! I've given up my right hand, slaved away my entire life, and what do I get? Nothing more than incompetent undead servants, an empty kingdom, a bone hand and a stupid, useless flying eel."

"Do you think Aladdin had it easy? He was a street rat. He stole to survive. But, he still helped people in need. I'm a firm believer in karma so this must be its way of repaying you for your ruthlessness, especially to Xerxes."

"What do you care of Xerxes?"

"I care because I've heard how you treated him the entire way here! He's nothing but loyal to you, probably the only person who gives a damn about you and your welfare, and you treat him like garbage!"

"Why does it matter?!"

"Because you have someone who cares for you, possibly loves you, and you take it for granted. Sure, you act like it's no big deal, but it is! I would kill for someone to care for me like Xerxes cares for you."

"And why is that? After all, aren't you a girl from a far away kingdom with loving parents and an ex-boyfriend who doted upon you?" I can hear the jealousy in his voice when he reaches the ex-boyfriend part. But, ignoring that, I realize that I gave part of my cover away.

Knowing that there is no way out of this, I hang my head.

"Okay, I haven't been completely honest with you guys." His eyebrows go up a little, but other than that, he has a poker face on.

"I wasn't sent by my mother. I was sent to the palace by Saleen to get her the oracle."

"I suspected that much, but there is more, isn't there?" I sigh.

"Yes. I'm also not from this time. The year I come from is that of 2013. Onyx wasn't given to me by my ex, Saleen gave him to me to protect me and help me look for the oracle. I've never even had a boyfriend before."

"Yes." Mozenrath says very calmly. Frighteningly calmly.

"I don't even know who my mother is." I break down into tears. Sobbing, I say,

"I was dumped on the doorstep of an orphanage like garbage. My whole life, couples never wanted to adopt me because they said there was something 'unlovable' about me. Friends were out of the question because I was the weird girl. So, when I see someone like you, hurting someone like Xerxes, I can't help but feel angry. Because that has been my whole life. Everyone deserves to feel loved and cared for. Even someone like you. So, go ahead, tell the others about how I'm traitorous, I don't care, I'm used to..."

I'm cut off by the pair of lips pressed to mine and I close my eyes. Tears rolls down my face and he uses his flesh thumb to wipe them away. His hands hug my waist to him, while my hands entangle themselves within his curled hair. He bites my lips and I move my hands to cup his face. His lips taste a little salty, but other than that, they taste mostly of sweet wine.

I break away at the last moment. Gasping for air, I look at him. Both of our tears have stopped. My voice cracks a little when I say,

"Wow. Just...wow. Well... that was...amazing. Was that your first..."

"Yes. And I must assume that it was yours as well." He says breathlessly. I nod my head.

"Well...we should probably get back to looking for the scarab." I say sheepishly.

"Agreed." We keep swimming down the tunnel looking for the scarab, when I spot something out of the corner of my eye. I stop and tug on Mozenrath's arm.

"Look over there." I point to the algae covered area with a bit of gold peeking out. We swim over to it and I try to pull it out, but won't budge.

"Could you?"

"Yeah." Mozenrath lifts up his globed hand and aims at the scarab. Slowly, but surely, the scarab is pulled from its place in the rocks. The scarab then floats into Mozenrath's hand.

He dusts off the scarab and looks at me.

"We'll head back and call the others."

"Okay, sounds like a plan."

"Don't be so hasty to leave dear."

We both turn to the direction of the voice.

"Who's there?" I ask nervously. A dragon shaped figure steps forward.

"Zachariah?"

"Yes, my dear Evangeline."

"Wait a minute." Mozenrath cuts in.

"You know him?"

"Yeah. He was the first person I met when I woke up on the shores. Though he wasn't very helpful."

"I only seemed unhelpful because you had to discover everything for yourself. If I had revealed everything prematurely the results would have been fatal." I feel faint at that part.

"Well, then could you tell me why I'm here?"

"I'm afraid it is still premature for that. When the time is right, you will be told everything of importance. Now, for the matter at hand, the scarab is a powerful artifact. You must make sure that Nasira does not get her hands on it. Otherwise you two will especially be in danger."

"That's the same thing the oracle said. Why do we suffer the most if Nasira succeeds?"

"The young sorceror will be hung for his crimes. But Destane will be the one to order it. And you will have to witness it, but that is not the worst of it."

"What's the worst part?"

"You'll end up being executed as a witch, but not before you give birth."

"Birth?"

"Witch?" Mozenrath asks, clearly not concerned about the birth part.

"Yes, witch. But I cannot..."

"We know, you cannot reveal it at this time. So can we leave with the scarab now or not?" Mozenrath crosses his arm and looks impatiently at Zachariah.

Zachariah sighs.

"You know, your impatience will hinder you in the future. But, yes you can go now, your friends will be waiting at the end of the tunnel for you."

"Thank you." I say. We start to swim in the other direction, when Zachariah shouts out at us,

"No matter what secrets are revealed, you two must not give up on each other, or you will surely lose!"

"Thanks, we'll be sure to take that to heart." Mozenrath shouts back, sarcastically. We head further down the tunnel and we find that Zachariah was right.

Aladdin, Saleen, and Jasmine are waiting for us at the end of the tunnel.

"Did you find anything?" Saleen asks tiredly. I nod my head and Mozenrath shows her the scarab.

"Great. Let's head up to the surface so we can head to the Cave of Wonders. Genie will know the way, and it should to take at least two days to get there." Aladdin says.

We all make our way up to the surface. Saleen and I walk on the shore calmly while everyone else stays underwater. I nudge Saleen's arm.

"Don't you think you should give them back the ability to breath ABOVE water?"

"I was just getting to that." She raises her arms and starts muttering again. The same golden light envelops us all and once again I don't feel anything. But it's obvious that everyone else does because they come up gasping for air. They all start walking up.

I turn to Saleen.

"I'm going to go look for the others. Here, hold the scarab until one of them take it from you, okay?"

"Yes, I will give the scarab to any other member of the group, and not run away with the scarab. The oath remember?"

"Right." I walk off looking for the others.

"Onyx! Xerxes! Genie! Iago! Carpet! Abu! Where are you guys?" No answer.

'_Where could they be?'_ I continue to walk down the coastline, yelling for them. Then I see Xerxes swimming towards me. A smile creeps up on my face, but then I see that Xerxes wears a face of distress. He's screaming and comes barreling into my arms. Xerxes is breathing heavy, so I try to calm him down and say,

"Xerxes, breath. What's wrong? Where are the others?" I look in the direction he came from, trying to see what he's so afraid of.

"Monster has everyone. Xerxes get away because Xerxes small. Wriggle out of monster's hand. You help, defeat monster. "

"What?! You want me to defeat a monster? I can't do that!"

"You defeat Mozenrath."

"That was completely different." The eel shakes his head at me.

"Not different. Same. Friends need you now! Go rescue them. You can do it." I look at Xerxes with a cocked eyebrow.

"You really think I can do it." He nods his head enthusiastically. I sigh,

"Fine. But go get everyone else. I feel like I'm going to need all the help I can get." Xerxes swims off in the opposite and I break into a run.

I run for a while until I see it. It is a large, seaweed covered, monster with orange eyes. The monster holds Genie and Carpet in one hand, while Onyx, Abu and Iago are in its other fist.

"Help! Get us outta here!" Iago screams. The parrot spots me.

"Oh thank goodness. Evangeline, help us! Please, I'm begging you!"

'_Iago should learn to keep his beak shut._' Cause the monster spots me. It reaches down with the fist that hold Genie an Carpet.

"Evangeline! Run!" Genie yells at me. I dodge and duck the monster's fist.

"What is this thing?"

"A seaweed monster. Only indigenous to the shores of the Seven Deserts. Very rare. And they only come out of their habitat when someone takes their sacred fruit." Says Genie as he turns into a blue Charles Darwin and glares at Abu an Iago.

I keep running from the monsters fist. Then I get an idea. Stopping in my tracks, I shout to everyone,

"Cover your ears!" Genie poofs up noise canceling headphones for everyone, except the monster.

Steadying my feet, I let the haunting melody come from my body. The monster stops advancing towards me and stands still. Its eyes glaze over and I smile.

"Drop the creatures you have in your fist." Iago, Abu, Carpet, Onyx and Genie come tumbling out of its hands. It's a long way down, but Genie poofs up a large pillow for everyone to land on. They still have the headphones on.

'_Perfect. Then they won't hear this next part.'_

I turn back to the monster.

"Marvelous. Now go back to wherever you came from and don't ever come out again." The monster nods his head and walks groggily to a cave nearby and heads in.

"Wow. It must have really been scared of your eyes." Genie says behind me. He's crossing his arms and looks at me suspiciously. I look at him with a confident expression.

"Yeah. They seam to have that affect on people."

_'He better keep his mouth shut. Or I might just have a genie in my collection of lackeys.'_ Just then Mozenrath, Saleen, Jasmine and Aladdin come running up. I look to make sure the headphones are gone, which they are, thankfully.

"Where's the monster?" Says Aladdin, looking like he's preparing for a fight.

"It's gone." I say. His posture relaxes a little, but not the whole way.

"Well where is it then?" Mozenrath looks at me impatiently and crosses his arms. Iago answers for me,

"She defeated the monster! The beast looked into her eyes and it ran for cover. You know, Evangeline could be a real asset to us in defeating monsters!"

"Humph. I don't know if we should go around trusting people who are still holding a certain secret from us, Iago." Genie glares at me. If looks could kill, I would have been incinerated.

I look at them all innocently and say with a serious voice,

"Well, you don't know what that secret is. It could be a harmless one, like I have a sixth toe or I can juggle six balls at the same time." My teeth are grinding themselves into oblivion.

Mozenrath shoots me a knowing look, then turns to the others.

"Look, let Evangeline have her secrets. We all have at least one that we don't want anyone to know, not even our spouses." He pointedly looks at Jasmine and Aladdin.

"Besides, knowing Evangeline, her secret will probably not be a big deal."

He winks at me, then raises his gloved hand. The glove glows a little bit and next thing I know, I'm standing in a cobalt blue version of my traveling clothes that Saleen gave me. Jasmine and Aladdin are wearing their usual gear, and Mozenrath is in his usual elegant wardrobe.

"Hey!" Says Saleen.

"Only I am allowed to make changes to the clothing." Mozenrath glares at her and she backs down.

"Well, now that the monster is out of the way, and we have the scarab, what's our next move?" I ask, waiting for someone to answer.

"We go to the Cave of Wonders. It's about a two days journey from here, so we'll have to stop overnight." Aladdin says in a heroic leader type tone.

"Well, I'll see you guys later." Saleen starts to make her way towards the water. I'm suprised.

"You're not going with us?"

"No, I'm afraid not. I have to look after my kingdom, that and I don't do well with deserts. And I can't leave Armond for a long period of time. So, just get me the scarab when you're done, you know, if it isn't destroyed by Nasira's potion."

"Okay. Well, I guess we'll see you then. Thanks for helping is find the scarab."

"No problem. Be careful dears." She blows air kisses at us and dives into the water.

"Alrighty then. Let's get moving."


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter 14:

The wind picks up my hair and plays around with it, whipping it around my face. The sun beats down upon us, but Mozenrath is taking most of it. Good thing he sat in the back, because his tall shadow provides enough shade for me and Onyx to stay moderately cool.

I listen to Mozenrath rant to Xerxes about how on earth he got wrangled into this mess, how he's the most powerful sorcerer of the millennia and he shouldn't waste his time with us. I look at him,

"Well, if you're supposedly the most powerful sorcerer of the millennia, then why are you so afraid of this Destane guy?"

He turns a shade of white I never thought possible. His eyes widen and his pupils dilate. He hisses at me through his teeth,

"Destane was the cruelest man on earth. I could never describe the hell he put me through. He was the Devil incarnate and deserved to rot in hell. Destane wasn't going to get to die and be relieved of his pain. So when I defeated him and took his magic, I made sure he'd suffer long and slowly. He was still of some use to me, so I made him my slave so he would always have to bow to me, his lowly apprentice."

I stare at him, narrowing my eyes.

'_What the heck did Destane do to him to mess him up so much?'_ Shaking the thought off, I spur Onyx on, until the sun starts to set. I slide off of Onyx, taking the satchel with me.

Mozenrath strides up behind me.

"What now?"

"Well, I guess we should set up camp, wait for the others, and just try to get as much sleep as we can."

"Alright." Mozenrath takes the satchel from me and heads off in the other direction, instructing Xerxes to help him. Onyx materializes beside me. I stare off at him, watching him pull out the sleeping bags and try to start a fire. His attempts were pretty hilarious, until he got so annoyed he just blasted the wood with his glove.

I sigh and shake my head, then start to prepare the food. We eat in silence and take sleeping bags on opposite sides of the fire. Drifting off to sleep, I figure that everyone else probably set up camp somewhere else. I slip into the welcoming darkness with open arms.

...

_The room is dark. I'm chained to a wall and I try to break free of my chains. The cell door opens and three figures slip in and grab the person chained up beside me. He limps out, looking back at me longingly. Tears slip and slide down my face. My breathing gets heavier and my body is racked with violent sobs. The crowd cheers and the sickening crack follows suit. I start screaming and crying at the same time. _

_The door opens again, but this time, I know the figure. Nasira grins wickedly at me. _

_"Oh, dear you shouldn't be so upset. After all, you are a siren, right? The prophesied Vessel of Angels. You have to have a back bone of some sort. Besides, Mozenrath doesn't mean that much to you anyway." _

_I stare at her._

_"That was Mozenrath?"_

_"Yes, my dear. But you still have so much to learn about . I mean, you aren't just a siren, now are you? Don't worry though, your questions will all be answered soon." She cackles loudly and disappears in a cloud of red smoke._

...

I'm being shaken awake by someone, violently. My heavy eyelids open to see Mozenrath on top of me.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" I pull myself out from underneath him and try to strike at him, but he dodges my fist.

"Look, I didn't mean to disturb your beauty sleep Miss Cranky-Pants, but we have company." He points off in the direction of where we came. Nine figures come riding up on tall horses. I run to Onyx,who has turned back into a horse, but I'm too late.

A thin, bony hand grabs my arm from behind and throws me to the ground. My attacker sits on a dark brown horse, looking down his long nose at me. He's dark skinned, tall, lean and wears a turban and an ear piercing.

Another rider comes up from behind. This one is short and fat. He looks at me greedily.

"Haroud, please tell me that you were planning on sharing the lovely lady. After all, it would be rude to keep her to yourself." He grins at me wickedly and I squirm a little. The pendant grows unbearably hot.

"Oh, please, Abis Mal. I would never think of that." The one called Haroud says to his companion. Seven other riders ride up. There is a tall fat man, an asian, a swordsman, a snake charmer and identical triplets.

The triplets hold a squirming Mozenrath between them and the asian has Xerxes in an iron grip.

"Let go of me! How dare you? I am Mozenrath! The youngest, most powerful sorcerer of the millennia and the Ruler of the Land of the Black Sands!"

Some of the men pale a little bit, but Abis Mal speaks back to him,

"Ha! Well tell me, oh powerful sorcerer, how did you get overpowered by the Forty Thieves?"

I look around confused, and count only nine men.

"But there's only nine of you."

"Yes we all know that." Snaps the asian.

"Our traitorous King if Thieves betrayed us to be with his son, and then Saluk sold the rest of us out to the royal guards of Agrabah." Explains the snake charmer.

"But that doesn't matter now." Abis Mal says with a wicked grin.

"Because we now have Mozenrath, and his beautiful companion. Knock him and the eel out, but leave the girl awake." He tells the swordsman and asian.

The swordsman pulls out a sword, rides over to Mozenrath, and hits his head with the sword hilt. The asian pinches a place on what I assume to be Xerxes neck, and he goes limp. My eyes widen when I realize that their is no way out. Unless...

"Please, oh mighty Abis Mal," I try to says this as pathetically as I can.

"You have triumphed over my partner. So, I surrender myself to you. But, please let me bathe in front of you so you can be sure I rid myself of his filth."

Their eyes visibly widen and all of their jaws drop. Abis Mal nods numbly, with a foolish smile on his face. The triplets jump off of their horses and lay Mozenrath down in the sand.

A metal basin is taken off of one of the horses saddles and the men all hurry to fill it up with water. When the tub is full, I slowly and dramatically strip off my clothes. Mozenrath starts shifting around and the swordsman hits him again.

I feel their eyes burning holes into various parts of my body, but I keep going until I stand in nothing but the pendant and the anklet. The anklet comes off first, then my hands reach up to unclasp the pendant. It falls to the sand almost as quickly as their jaws drop.

"But, you were..."

"What trickery is this?"

"Shut up men! She still is rather beautiful. Let us watch our new ward, shall we?" The men all fall silent as I slip in one leg into the water, followed by the other. I lower myself in and the magic takes its effect.

The horrified look on their faces is priceless as they watch my legs fuse together, hands turn into claws, scales erupt all over my body, and my fangs poke out of my gums. I smile at them.

"What, boys? Don't you still think I'm beautiful? Or is a siren just too hideous?" I finish that last statement with an evil smile that showcases my fangs.

"A SIREN! Run men, run!" Shouts Abis Mal, but he and his men are too late. Because the next thing that they hear is my hypnotic song. Once I've made sure that I have their attention, I give them my orders.

"You are all to start walking aimlessly in the desert, until your feet bleed. Then keep walking, until you pass out from exhaustion. But keep walking, until someone cuts your miserable lives short. And leave anything that you have stolen from us on the ground and leave the sorcerer and the eel. Now go."

They all empty their pockets of valuable jewels and gold and shuffle into the desert, leaving us all behind. Once they're out of sight, I lift myself out of the water and put the pendant and anklet back on, along with my clothes. I run over to where Mozenrath lies in the sand and grudgingly lick his sand covered cheek.

His eyes shoot open and he asks in a demanding tone of voice,

"What the hell are you doing woman?"

"Oh, so now you wake up in an instant. Listen the thieves are gone, but we should probably get going since it's almost dawn. By the way, when's the last time you took a bath?"


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter 15:

10 minutes later, I'm waiting for Mozenrath to get out of the tub. _'How long does it take for a grown man to bathe himself?'_ I know that I'm going to kick myself later for this, but I turn around to look at Mozenrath and start walking over.

"Okay, that's long enough pretty boy! You take longer than most women! You..." I stop mid-rant because Mozenrath is standing out of the water, with no towel. He smirks at me. But then my eye is drawn to something else.

Large scars and burn marks mar Mozenrath's otherwise perfect torso, even his bone arm looks perfect in the moonlight. A long and ugly scar runs horizontally across his long and elegant neck. I scoot in closer to him and start tracing them with my index finger. He visibly flinches at this and shoves his gauntlet and clothes on, including his turban that covers his neck. I look up at him.

"Where did you get them from?" He winces again and tries to shrug me off.

"They're nothing. I probably just got them by accident."

I look up at his pain filled eyes.

"You and I both know that you didn't just get these by accident. Especially that one." I say pointing at his neck.

"Where are they from?"

He sighs, and reluctantly states,

"Destane. He used me in his experiments when I was young and abused me as well. I would go weeks locked in a dungeon with Destane's monsters without food or water. The one on my neck is where he magically slashed my throat. That one was a test to see if I was smart enough to survive."

"So this is why you hate and fear him so much." He nods sadly at me.

"I'm so sorry. I could never imagine what growing up like that would be like. I only wish I could make it better with this." I stand up on my tiptoes and kiss him softly. He outwardly groans and seams to want to make it go deeper, but he holds back and stops the kiss.

He glares at me and says,

"I don't need your sympathy." He growls at me. Breaking away from me, he walks off in a huff. Completely shocked, I run up to him and stand in his way. I whisper to him gently,

"Mozenrath, that wasn't out of pity. I know that you don't need pity, because you're strong."

He laughs at this as tears slip down his face.

"I'm not strong. A street rat defeats me all the time and I'm crying right now in front of a woman. Who has also defeated me and ordered me around like a servant. That's not strong if you ask me." I smile and shake my head at him and feel tears of my own slip out. My voice cracks a little as I say,

"No, no. You're just crying because you've been too strong for too long."

I reach up again and kiss away his tears while he nuzzles my neck. He mumbles into my hair,

"Why do you have this affect on me? I've never been this way with anyone before."

"I don't know. We're just two broken souls, longing to be fixed. And I'm going to try my best to fix you." I whisper to him, letting my lips brush against his ear. He groans again and pulls me in tighter. Our lips meet with a soft start, but gets more violent as it progresses. I bite his bottom lip and wiggle my hands in under his turban to grasp his hair. His hands trace patterns in the small of my back and secures our bodies together.

I come back up for air.

""We should probably get going." I say regretfully. Mozenrath nods his head in agreement. We're all packed up by dawn, and we set off again in the direction of the Cave of Wonders.

...

Five hours later, we come to the site where the entrance to the Cave of Wonders is supposed to be. We waste time by holding hands, snuggling, making out, talking. The usual things sorcerers and girls who are secretly sirens do. We are in deep conversation, when we turn our attention to the lack of our other companions.

"Where do you think they are?"

"I don't know, but if Aladdin doesn't show up, I'm going to go in there myself. I will not allow Nasira to revive Destane."

"Well, it's a good thing then that we have the scarab, not them." I tell him, trying to smooth down his ruffled feathers. He appears to calm down a little bit, and then asks me,

"Speaking of which, where is the scarab?"

I answer his question by pulling the scarab out of my satchel and display it to him for a brief moment before I return it back.

"Good." He says. I see something flying towards us in the distance, and I point it out to Mozenrath.

"That's probably them." I said, standing up. He stands up with me, and in a matter of seconds, the rest of our company arrives.

"What took you guys so long?" I ask them, tapping my foot and crossing my arms for effect. Aladdin answers, "Sorry! We ran into a problem along the way. For some reason we ran into Abis Mal and the other Forty Thieves." I swallow loudly.

"Wait, is this Abis Mal guy kind of short and chubby, acts a little bit like a child? And the thieves, were they an asian, a snake charmer, a swordsman, a fat man, and triplets?" Aladdin looks taken aback.

"Yeah," he says, clearly shocked. All of them look shocked, including Mozenrath.

"How do you know Abis Mal and the Forty Thieves?" Asks Genie with a suspicious look on his face.

"We ran into them last night. They tried to take the oracle, the scarab, and, frankly, Mozenrath and his entire kingdom. But the eyes never fail. I told them to walk aimlessly in the desert for the rest of their lives. But, now that you know how I know them, how do you know them?"

"When Jafar was a genie, long story, Abis Mal was his first master. He now pesters us all of the time, trying to take over Agrabah."

"Who doesn't try to take over Agrabah?" Mozenrath scoffs. I look at him incredulously.

"What?" He asks.

"It's true. For some reason almost every villain in the Seven Deserts is attracted to that certain kingdom. I'm only interested in it because it's there." He says bluntly, raising his hands over his shoulders. I shake my head at him and turn my attention back to Aladdin and the others.

"You were saying."

"Right. Well, the Forty Thieves, we met them at our wedding. Actually, my father was leading that raid." I look at him quizzically.

"My father is the former King of Thieves."

"Ha! Not surprising. Guess the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree, eh, Aladdin?" I elbow Mozenrath in the ribs.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"You know, just because you two are enemies, doesn't mean you have to make it your life's goal to insult each other on a daily basis."

"He's the one who sent me up in a cage attached to a hot air balloon!"

"You're the one who tried to switch bodies with me!"

"You're the one who ruined my citadel, on numerous occasions!"

"You trapped not only me, but my entire family in that Otherworld of black sand!"

"You're the one who time after time derails my plans for world conquest!"

"World conquest? Ha! You couldn't even conquer one other country!"

"Enough! You two sound like children!" To prove his point, Genie zaps Aladdin and Mozenrath into infants. I can't help but giggle at how utterly and ridiculously cute Mozenrath looks. Especially with his pouty little face. They both start crying, clearly distressed by their situation.

"Aww, does someone need their diapers changed." Genie changes into an elderly grandmother and picks up Aladdin and Mozenrath and proceeds to change them in front of us, along with burping them, feeding them, and putting them to bed in a crib.

"Okay, Genie, you can turn them back, I think they learned their lesson." Jasmine says to Genie. He reluctantly zaps them back to normal and the crib disappears. Mozenrath is still asleep, sucking his thumb. He wakes up and glares daggers at Genie, who simply shrugs his shoulders.

"Alright, alright. So now what do we do?" I ask the group.

"Leave it to me." Genie says as he cracks his knuckles. He claps his hands and we are all transported to a cavern with a high ceiling. Everyone is too busy making plans, so they don't see me scoot over to Mozenrath.

"Hey." I whisper to him.

"What." He hisses back.

"Nothing, except for the fact that you were pretty cute as a baby, wouldn't you say?" His posture straightens a little bit at this and a slight smile graces his full lips. I smile at him, seeing my eyes change from a dull yellow to a bright, icy blue in the reflection of his eyes.

He obviously sees the change, because the next thing out of his mouth is,

"You know, you told me all about how you acquired Onyx and your life history, but you still haven't told me why your eyes change color." I think quick and say,

"A reaction to some of the stuff Saleen gave me when I first met her. She threw something into my eyes and they've just changed ever since."

He seams to buy it and turns his attention towards something in one of the ceiling corners in the cavern. His eyes widen and he shouts,

"GET DOWN!"

I barely have any time to register what's happening when I'm hurled against a wall by my wrists. Looking around, I see that everyone else is in the same disposition as I am. Genie tries to magically free himself, but ends up being zapped back by the chains. The burnt Genie sputters out some smoke while Iago sighs,

"Great, just great. Let me guess, magic-proof manacles? Better get started monkey." Abu chatters back to him and reaches his tail up to pick the lock, but fails in doing so.

My blood runs cold as I hear a maniacal laugh that I know all too well. Nasira arrives in a cloud of red smoke that temporarily blinds us for a moment. When the smoke clears, we can see her standing in the center of the room with her hands on her hips, smirking at us.

"Fantastic! Now that my audience has arrived, we can start the show!"


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter 16:

Nasira smirks at us, clearly relishing in handiwork.

"Now that you're all here, I can get started on reviving Jafar and Destane. But, first." The satchel materializes in her hand and she digs around in it for the scarab. She pulls her hand out with her prize.

"No!" Screams Aladdin, but it's too late because Nasira melts it down with one of her spells. She cackles at our defeat.

"Did you really think that you would waltz in here and defeat me with that pathetic scarab? Honestly, I expected more from the great Aladdin." She cackles again and conjures up a spell book and cauldron. Nasira opens the book to a specific page and runs her finger down it.

"Aha! To revive one, simply combine the following ingredients: gold shavings, red parrot feathers, monkey fur, and siren tears. For best results have them fresh. And look, I have all the fresh ingredients I need here."

Genie scoffs.

"Sure, you have the gold shaving, parrot feathers and monkey fur, but you missed one thing. You don't have a siren. Take that, crazy witch lady!" He smirks at her with triumph in his eyes.

Nasira laughs again.

"Oh, don't I have a siren, Genie. Evangeline dear, I believe it's time to show everyone the real you." My heart beats loud and quick in my chest. I shake my head and start to feel sick to my stomach.

"Please, no, no." She ignores my pleading cries and throws the very same glitter that Saleen threw at me the first day into my face. The pain that follows is excruciating and I black out.

Mozenrath's POV:

I watch as Nasira throws something into Evangeline's face. What follows is haunting. Evangeline starts to wail in agony, and I can hear her bones audibly breaking and reforming. Her skin starts to rip and turn a grey color. Black, glittering scales erupt all over her body and her hands become claws. Fangs poke through her gums and leaves her mouth a bloody mess. Anger boils my blood at seeing my sweet Evangeline going through such torturous pain.

"Nasira! What did you do to her?" I yell out to her. She smiles maliciously at me.

"Why Mozenrath. I'm surprised you haven't figured it out yet. This is her 'harmless' little secret." Evangeline's transformation stops and she appears unconscious. I try to free myself from my chains so I can get to her, but it's no use.

Evangeline's POV:

I finally wake back up from my unconsciousness to the sound of rattling chains. My eyes flit around the room and finally focus on something. Mozenrath is pulling against his chains to try and get to me while everyone else is just staring at me.

"What did you do to her?!" Mozenrath screams out at Nasira. She chuckles darkly.

"Why Mozenrath, I did nothing except reveal her true form." I'm confused about what she's talking about, then it hits me. I hang my head in shame, trying not to let Mozenrath see me.

"Evangeline, what are you?" Aladdin says, making Nasira laugh even more.

"I'm surprised that even you haven't figured it out by now Aladdin. I mean, the changing eyes, the way she easily defeated her foes without the use of combat, and how she just happened to come across Saleen, it should be obvious by now." Realization dawns on Genie's face.

"You're a siren. Se's been tricking us this entire time. I bet her name isn't even Evangeline!" I rolls my eyes at him. Then Iago speaks.

"You know what, I think that Nasira is casting an illusion spell. After all she did defeat everything with her eyes." I outwardly cringe when Abu agrees with him.

"What's wrong with you guys?" Asks Aladdin.

"The evidence is right in front of you!" Shouts Genie. Nasira looks at me and grins.

"I think I'll leave you all to chit chat while I go check up on something." And with that she disappears in a puff of red smoke.

"What is she talking about Evangeline?" I sigh and mutter out,

"I might have, kind of, put them under a spell."

"WHAT?!"

"Uh, this would be so much easier if someone else could explain, but first things first. Abu, Iago, I release you." The glazed look in their eyes disappears, and I instantly regret my decision to take the spell off of them.

"THE GIRL IS NUTS! Al, you've got to believe me, she's worse than Jafar Jr.!" He opens his beak again and perfectly imitates my voice, making me cringe again.

"Well, it's true what you saw. My singing did incapacitate him and his eel. But that was so I could protect you guys, cause from the looks of it, he was a bad guy. Unfortunately, I should have done the same to you. I'm sorry guys, but I can't have you exposing my secret."

Mozenrath looks at me in amusement.

"You know, you make a pretty good villain." I blush slightly, but then my bliss is interrupted by Iago's squawking.

"What was she talking about, revealing her secret? But next thing we know, monkey boy and I are here, chained to a wall." Iago stops talking for a second and looks at me, and screams.

"Ahhh! What is that thing!?"

"Iago." I growl at him.

"It's me, Evangeline."

"Evangeline. What happened to you? You look like a...oh."

"Yeah."

"I knew it! I knew there was something different about you. At first, when I saw the eyes, I thought, maybe she's telling the truth about being cursed. But then, when I saw you in the treasury-"

"Evangeline! You were the one that broke into the treasury?" Asks a shocked Jasmine.

"Yes. But only because it was the only way I could get home!"

"What do you mean it was the only way you could get home?" Aladdin asks.

"Long story, if we get out of this alive, I'll make sure to tell you. Now, how do we get out of this mess?"


	18. Chapter 17

Chapter 17:

After what seams like 20 minutes of trying to break out of our chains, we are no where close to escape. I've finally changed back to my normal form.  
"Mozenrath, can't you do anything with that glove of yours?" I ask him.  
"Anti-magic chains, remember?"

"Oh...right." I say, feeling dumb.  
"Wait! I've got it!" Genie cries out.  
"I've read somewhere that sirens aren't affected by anti-magical items. That's got to be why you were able to change forms! So, all you've got to do is...is...I've got nothing." He slumps down, looking disappointed.

"No, no Genie, I think you're right. I just wish I had some other power than singing and changing forms and appearances." Mozenrath's head shoots up.  
"Evangeline, you can change forms." We're all confused by his statement.

"Yeah, didn't you see me change forms like...twenty minutes ago?"

"No, I know you can, but in your siren form you have fangs right?" The realization of what he's saying hits me like a brick wall. "Well boy, don't I feel like an idiot. But, I don't know if my fangs can bite through metal."

"That's the thing, but sirens have been known to bite through metal all the time, now the difficult part is how we get you back into your siren form. Do you know any other way then the glitter to transform?"

I hang my head.  
"Yeah, water. But we don't have any." We all start to feel sorry for ourselves when a puff of red smoke appears in the cavern.  
"How are my favorite prisoners doing? Oh, Evangeline, you can't look like that! I need your tears as a siren!" She throws the glitter again, the transformation being less painful this time. '_Perfect!_' I think. Nasira saunters over and starts to poke and prodd me with sharp things. "Come on! I need you to cry!"

"Please! I'll never let you get my tears!" I scream at her. She straightens back up with a cruel smile on her face. "Fine then. If I can't make you cry by torturing you, I'll torture your little lover boy."

"No!"

"Then cry!" I hang my head in defeat.  
"Fine. Do you have any onions?"

"No."

"Then go get some." She disappears again and I take my chance. I bite down hard on the metal, which breaks off in my mouth.

"Yes!" I keep biting until the chains are no longer holding me. I drag myself over to where Mozenrath is and start chomping down.

"And what exactly do you think you're doing?" I wince. '_Busted!_' I turn around to see Nasira crossing her arms, tapping her foot and holding an onion.  
"You weren't trying to free yourselves, were you? I'm so disappointed in you." She swipes her free hand through the air and I'm knocked into a cavern wall. Nasira stalks towards me.

"Evangeline! Just sing!"_ 'Oh, right, duh.'_ I open my mouth to start singing, but nothing comes out. Startled, I try again. Nothing. My heart starts to race as Nasira cackles.

"Do you really think I'm that stupid to capture a siren and not place an anti-hypnosis charm on it? Honestly, I am dealing with idiots here!" She swipes the air again and I'm lifted to my feet...er...fins. I'm brought to about three inches away from her face.

"Now." Nasira hisses at me. "You're going to do as I say, or I turn your dear Mozenrath into a mamluk. Got it?" I nod my agreement.  
"But." I manage to croak out. "You need to promise me that you'll let my friends go."

"No, Evangeline!"

"We won't leave you with her!"

"Evangeline please! I don't want to lose you!" Mozenrath pleads with me. I close my eyes. "Do we have a deal?" She considers for a moment, then nods. "Get them out of here."

"No!" Mozenrath cries out. _'Bye Moze. Just know that I love you.'_ Then they disappear. A single tear slides down my cheek.  
"Thank you very much." Nasira cackles at me as I lower back down to the ground and slump against the wall.

Mozenrath POV:

She's gone. The love of my life is gone.  
"No!" I scream out at the world.  
"Mozenrath calm down."

"No! I can't calm down! I can't just sit around while Evangeline is trapped with that nutcase!" Aladdin is shocked by my rampage. I get down on my hands and knees and start digging around in the sand. "Xerxes! Onyx! Help me! We have to find her!"

The dog and eel come over and start digging. "Dig Xerxes! Dig!"

"Why is Wonderboy so distressed about Evangeline? I mean after all, she was working for Saline! She betrayed us!" My blood boils an I shoot a fireball at the blue genie.

"How can you say that about her?! She just saved your life! And she's done it twice already! So don't go and ask why we should save her!" I go back to digging, turning my back to the shocked group.

"Oh my Allah...Mozenrath's in love." Jasmine states. I stop digging and hang my head.  
"Yes. Okay, I'll admit it. I'm in love with Evangeline. I don't know why, but I feel like she completes me. And I know that if we can't save her, I'll never be able to live with myself."

Aladdin walks over and lays a hand on my shoulder. "We'll help you buddy." And gets down on his hands and knees in the sand and starts digging. One by one, the rest of them follow suit and pretty soon we're all digging. I smile to myself and think,  
'_I'm coming Evangeline, I'm coming.'_


	19. Chapter 18

Chapter 18:

'_My heart has broken into a million pieces, and the pain is unbearable. I just sent away the only man who has ever come close to loving me and the only people I could call friends. But I would do anything for them, and so I'll stay with my broken heart till my end.'_

Nasira smirks down at me from where she's standing. "You know, if you had kept Mozenrath, he would have been absolutely fine." I glare at her through the hair that covers my eyes, which are most likely red now. "After all, we need him for much bigger plans."

"Go to hell." I spit at her. "Oh no, I'll just wait for my brother to tell me how it is before I go." She cackles again. _'God, when is this woman not cackling?!'_ Nasira saunters over to her spell book and drops in my tears. She starts humming as she adds the various ingredients that she acquired from us.

"Last ingredient, gold shavings." She smiles at me as she grates what used to be the scarab into the cauldron. "Alright, to activate potion simply chant the following." She takes a moment to look at the spell. "Fairly simple. Ahem." Nasira clears her voice.

"Mors mihi praeteritos referat , qui perit!" Nasira cries out. Nothing happens. She blinks. "Maybe I missed something in that spell book." She looks over it again. "No, it says here that it should work right away." She puts down the book. "Alright, let's try this again. Mors mihi praeteritos referat , qui perit!"

Again nothing happens. She stomps her foot in frustration. "Why isn't this working!"

"Because you used the scarab. Therefore, your powers are now useless." The Oracle now stands in the middle of the room. "What?!" She screams out. "I only answer one question." The Oracle tells her. I smirk. "Maybe you should read the fine print first." I tell her.

She turns around with hellfire burning in her eyes. "You little brat! I knew I should have picked a different siren."

"You're the reason why I'm here?" Now it's her turn to smirk. "Yes, true, finding the Vessel of Angels was difficult, but it was worth it. But then your parents had to delay everything by 21 years."

"My...my parents?" She scowls. "They were in my way, so I had to dispose of them. Of course, their love for you was as strong as it could be, and cast a strong spell that kept you away from me."

"You bitch! You're the one who orphaned me!" She smirks again. "Yes, and what are you going to do about it?" I smile cruelly at her causing her smirk to fade into an expression of fear. "Since you no longer have your powers, I'm sure that charm you put on me wore off."

Before she can react, she is hypnotized by the haunting melody of my voice. That glazed look in her appears and I smirk. _'Victory is mine.'_ Just then, Mozenrath appears.

"Evangeline!" He rushes to my side.

"Hey Moze." He nuzzles my neck. "I thought I had lost you. Why did you send me away?"

"Because I didn't want anything to happen to you. It was the only way you would be safe." Mozenrath smiles at me and kisses me softly. "Okay, so, for the record, you aren't...repulsed...by the siren part of me?" I ask him.

Mozenrath shakes his head, still smiling. "Nope. You weren't repulsed by my arm, so why should I be repulsed by your siren form?"

I smile at him and kiss him again. But I think of something and pull out. "Wait. How did you get back in here?"

"I teleported."

"Teleported?"

"Mhmm."

"Okay, where's everyone else?" I ask him. "Right behind you." I turn around to see the gang. "You all came."

"You bet. We owed you after you saved us, numerous amounts of times." Aladdin tells me. "Hey, what happened to the snake man's sister?" I smirk and jerk my thumb in her direction. "Over there, her powers are gone, and I have no intention of releasing her."

"What do we do with her?" Mozenrath asks the group. "I have an idea. Genie, will you do me the honor?" Genie smiles at Aladdin, knowing something we don't. "Why, Mister Aladdin sir, it will my pleasure be." He poofs up a black oil lamp and rubs it.

Nasira's form starts to shake and she's sucked into the lamp. Genie poofs it away again and slaps the dirt off his hands. "That ought to do it. Come on, let's get you home Evangeline."

"Home?" I ask him. "Yeah, home. To Wiz Kid's place. Sure it's a little gloomy there, but you'll get used to it, especially after I redecorate!" Mozenrath narrows his eyes a little at Genie. In response, Genie smiles sheepishly. "Or not."

I look at Mozenrath. "Your place huh? I hope your willing to do a little housework." He smiles at me. "Of course. After all, you are the one who cleaned me up when I was broken."


	20. Epilogue

Epilogue:

It's been a month since everything happened. Saleen has stopped by a couple of times with Armond to see how I'm doing. I also managed to get Nasira to tell me who my parents were.

Moze and I visited their grave in New York City. My mother was Gisele du Prix, and my father was John du Prix. The du Prix's were a provident family, coming from a long line of sirens and sorcerers. I met my grandparents, who told me I was an only child. It was nice to meet them.

Mozenrath and I keep each other good company. Everything we do is in sync. But, something's going on with him, I know it.

"Hey Mozey." I tell him, looking at him from the doorway. "Hey babe." He smiles up at me from his work. I waltz over and wrap my arms around his shoulders. "Whatcha working on?"

"A surprise." I raise my eyebrow."Really? For who?"

"You'll see."

"Fine. I'm going to bed."

...

"Evangeline. Evangeline. Wake up sweetheart." I groan. "What. What is it?"

"Nothing, just, I wanted you to get ready so we could go and pick out your engagement ring." I shoot up. "Engagement ring?" Moze nods his head. "And wedding bands. How else will I be able to protect what's mine?" He purred into my ear. I kissed the man who was my future.

'_So this is how it feels. To have friends that adore me, a family that loves me. And now, a guy that understands and truly cares about me.'_

**The End**


End file.
